Devon Smith
Encyclopedia
Devon Sheldon Smith is a cricket
er who represents the West Indies. His primary role within the team is as an opening or top order left-handed batsman, he has bowled right arm off break
s in his career but rarely at international level. In the West Indian domestic competitions he plays for the Windward Islands
. He has been described as a compact player who heavily favours scoring on the offside.
debut in January 1999, opening the batting for the Windward Islands in a Regional Four Day Competition match, he made low scores of 12 and 4 in a heavy defeat to Barbados. His first half-century was brought up in his third match of the season, scoring 79 in the first innings against the Leeward Islands. It was the only time he passed 50 runs in his debut season, finishing with a batting average
of 18.44 from nine innings, which is considered low for a specialist batsman. His average remained around that level over the following two seasons. Despite his relatively low scoring, he was picked to play for the West Indies A team against South Africa A in September 2000, making scores of 14 and 23 in a drawn match. In the 2000–01 season Smith was part of the Windward Islands team that won the List-A West Indian domestic competition for the second time in their history.
The 2001–02 marked a significant improvement in Smith's form, he made 841 first-class runs at an average of 64.69 and scored his first century. A successful tour of England with the West Indies A team followed, yielding 465 runs at an average of 46.50.
debut in the first match of a four-Test series at Bourda
, a score of 3 in the first innings was followed by 62 in the second, in a match that Australia went on to win by 9 wickets. Despite scoring a pair in the second Test, Smith retained his place for the rest of the series, making another half-century in the third Test. Smith also made his ODI debut on the same tour, he played the first three matches of the seven-ODI series, making a highest score of 26.
After being dropped from the West Indies team for their 2003–04 tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa, Smith regained his place for England's tour following an impressive domestic season, where he was the leading batsman in the Regional Four Day Competition, scoring 842 runs at an average of 76.54. His good form continued into the first Test of the series, where he made 108, described as a "gritty effort laced with occasional panache", his first Test century. Smith was unable to play in the final two matches of the four-Test series after fracturing his thumb while practising in the nets
.
From May 2004 to June 2005 Smith played six Test matches, failing to reach a half-century in that time. During the 2004 tour of England
he played three ODIs in the NatWest Series
, where he made a highest score of 44, it was his last appearance for the ODI team until January 2007. Smith made a slight return to form in November 2005 against Australia in Brisbane. In a heavy defeat he was the only West Indies player to score a half century, making 88 in the first innings. Despite this Smith did not perform well in the rest of the series and again lost his place in the side.
, he didn't feature in the early stages of the tournament, but he played three matches in the Super Eight stage
. He averaged 33.00 from his three innings, including a highest score of 61. Smith played no further part in the tournament as the West Indies were unable to advance to the semi-finals. In June 2007 Smith made his Twenty20 International
debut, striking three sixes
in an innings of 61. Later in the year he played both of the West Indies's two matches in the World Twenty20, making scores of 35 and 51. His return to the Test side also came in 2007, he played in all four Tests of the series in England
. It was a disappointing series from Smith who averaged 21.28 with a highest score of 42. This was followed by an even worse ODI series in Zimbabwe, where in four innings he only managed a highest score of 5. An improvement came on the tour to South Africa, he hit three sixes in a career best ODI innings of 91.
After playing in the Test series against Sri Lanka and Australia, where he made a highest score of 48 from eight innings, he was dropped from the side for the tour to New Zealand. However, following a career best performance for the Windward Islands, scoring 212 runs against Guyana, he was rewarded with a recall to the side for the home series against England. He played in all five Tests of the series and finished with an average of 27.50 with a highest score of 55, his only half-century. He also played both matches of the following Test series, again against England. Although he failed to reach a half-century in his four innings, his average of 26.25 was the third highest for the West Indies. The second Test against England was the last Test Smith played in 2009, however he featured in the home ODI series against Bangladesh, where he made a highest score of 65. He was playing with an under-strength West Indies team because of the West Indies Players' Association
strike. He played only one international match in 2010, scoring 55 in a drawn Test against Sri Lanka. Despite not playing in an ODI since September 2009, Smith was included in the West Indies squad for the 2011 Cricket World Cup
. He finished the tournament as the highest run-scorer for the West Indies; 300 runs at an average of 42.85 and a top score of 107, his first ODI century.
Following the World Cup, Smith was selected for the ODI and Test squads for Pakistan's tour. After disappointing Test and ODI series where, troubled by the spin bowling attack of Pakistan, Smith managed only 47 runs from five innings, he was dropped from the side.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who represents the West Indies. His primary role within the team is as an opening or top order left-handed batsman, he has bowled right arm off break
Off break
Off break is a type of delivery in the sport of cricket. It is the attacking delivery of an off spin bowler. Off breaks are known as off spinners....
s in his career but rarely at international level. In the West Indian domestic competitions he plays for the Windward Islands
Windward Islands cricket team
The Windward Islands cricket team is a cricket team representing the member countries of the Windward Islands Cricket Board of Control. The team plays in the West Indies regional tournament....
. He has been described as a compact player who heavily favours scoring on the offside.
Early domestic cricket
He made his first-classFirst-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
debut in January 1999, opening the batting for the Windward Islands in a Regional Four Day Competition match, he made low scores of 12 and 4 in a heavy defeat to Barbados. His first half-century was brought up in his third match of the season, scoring 79 in the first innings against the Leeward Islands. It was the only time he passed 50 runs in his debut season, finishing with a batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 18.44 from nine innings, which is considered low for a specialist batsman. His average remained around that level over the following two seasons. Despite his relatively low scoring, he was picked to play for the West Indies A team against South Africa A in September 2000, making scores of 14 and 23 in a drawn match. In the 2000–01 season Smith was part of the Windward Islands team that won the List-A West Indian domestic competition for the second time in their history.
The 2001–02 marked a significant improvement in Smith's form, he made 841 first-class runs at an average of 64.69 and scored his first century. A successful tour of England with the West Indies A team followed, yielding 465 runs at an average of 46.50.
International cricket
Smith made the step up to international cricket when he was selected in the West Indies squad to face Australia in their 2003 tour. He made his TestTest cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
debut in the first match of a four-Test series at Bourda
Bourda
The Bourda is a cricket ground in Georgetown, Guyana, used by the Guyanese cricket team for matches with other nations in the Caribbean as well as some Test matches involving the West Indies. Located in Bourda in Georgetown, Guyana, between Regent Street and North Road, it is home to the Georgetown...
, a score of 3 in the first innings was followed by 62 in the second, in a match that Australia went on to win by 9 wickets. Despite scoring a pair in the second Test, Smith retained his place for the rest of the series, making another half-century in the third Test. Smith also made his ODI debut on the same tour, he played the first three matches of the seven-ODI series, making a highest score of 26.
After being dropped from the West Indies team for their 2003–04 tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa, Smith regained his place for England's tour following an impressive domestic season, where he was the leading batsman in the Regional Four Day Competition, scoring 842 runs at an average of 76.54. His good form continued into the first Test of the series, where he made 108, described as a "gritty effort laced with occasional panache", his first Test century. Smith was unable to play in the final two matches of the four-Test series after fracturing his thumb while practising in the nets
Cricket nets
Cricket nets are practice nets used by batsmen and bowlers to warm up and/or improve their cricketing techniques. Cricket nets consist of a cricket pitch which is enclosed by cricket nets on either side, to the rear and optionally the roof. The bowling end of the net is left open...
.
From May 2004 to June 2005 Smith played six Test matches, failing to reach a half-century in that time. During the 2004 tour of England
West Indian cricket team in England in 2004
The West Indies cricket team toured England from 19 June to 31 August 2004. The tour began with 3 One-day matches against county teams, followed by the NatWest Series against England and New Zealand...
he played three ODIs in the NatWest Series
NatWest Series
The NatWest Series is the name used for One Day International cricket tournaments held in England since 2000. The tournaments are sponsored by the National Westminster Bank.-2000 to 2005: triangular series:...
, where he made a highest score of 44, it was his last appearance for the ODI team until January 2007. Smith made a slight return to form in November 2005 against Australia in Brisbane. In a heavy defeat he was the only West Indies player to score a half century, making 88 in the first innings. Despite this Smith did not perform well in the rest of the series and again lost his place in the side.
Return to the side
Smith made his return to international cricket in January 2007 for the West Indies's tour of India, he played in three matches of the four-ODI series, making a highest score of 33. He retained his place in the side for the 2007 Cricket World Cup2007 Cricket World Cup
The 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament that took place in the West Indies from 13 March to 28 April 2007, using the sport's One Day International format...
, he didn't feature in the early stages of the tournament, but he played three matches in the Super Eight stage
2007 Cricket World Cup Super Eight stage
The Super Eight stage of the 2007 Cricket World Cup was scheduled between 27 March 2007 and 21 April 2007, and determined the four qualifiers for the semi-finals of the tournament...
. He averaged 33.00 from his three innings, including a highest score of 61. Smith played no further part in the tournament as the West Indies were unable to advance to the semi-finals. In June 2007 Smith made his Twenty20 International
Twenty20 International
A Twenty20 International is a form of cricket which is played over 20 overs per side between two national cricket teams. The game is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket...
debut, striking three sixes
Boundary (cricket)
Boundary has two distinct meanings in the sport of cricket:# the edge or boundary of the playing field, and# a manner of scoring runs.-Edge of the field:...
in an innings of 61. Later in the year he played both of the West Indies's two matches in the World Twenty20, making scores of 35 and 51. His return to the Test side also came in 2007, he played in all four Tests of the series in England
West Indian cricket team in England in 2007
The West Indian cricket team toured England from 12 May to 7 July 2007 as part of the 2007 English cricket season. The tour included four Tests, two Twenty20 international matches and three One Day Internationals...
. It was a disappointing series from Smith who averaged 21.28 with a highest score of 42. This was followed by an even worse ODI series in Zimbabwe, where in four innings he only managed a highest score of 5. An improvement came on the tour to South Africa, he hit three sixes in a career best ODI innings of 91.
After playing in the Test series against Sri Lanka and Australia, where he made a highest score of 48 from eight innings, he was dropped from the side for the tour to New Zealand. However, following a career best performance for the Windward Islands, scoring 212 runs against Guyana, he was rewarded with a recall to the side for the home series against England. He played in all five Tests of the series and finished with an average of 27.50 with a highest score of 55, his only half-century. He also played both matches of the following Test series, again against England. Although he failed to reach a half-century in his four innings, his average of 26.25 was the third highest for the West Indies. The second Test against England was the last Test Smith played in 2009, however he featured in the home ODI series against Bangladesh, where he made a highest score of 65. He was playing with an under-strength West Indies team because of the West Indies Players' Association
West Indies Players' Association
The West Indies Players' Association is the representative body for professional cricketers from the Caribbean nations that constitute the West Indies Cricket Board ....
strike. He played only one international match in 2010, scoring 55 in a drawn Test against Sri Lanka. Despite not playing in an ODI since September 2009, Smith was included in the West Indies squad for the 2011 Cricket World Cup
2011 Cricket World Cup
The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. It was Bangladesh's first time co-hosting a World Cup...
. He finished the tournament as the highest run-scorer for the West Indies; 300 runs at an average of 42.85 and a top score of 107, his first ODI century.
Following the World Cup, Smith was selected for the ODI and Test squads for Pakistan's tour. After disappointing Test and ODI series where, troubled by the spin bowling attack of Pakistan, Smith managed only 47 runs from five innings, he was dropped from the side.
Career best batting performances
| Game form | Score | Fixture | Venue | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Test Test cricket Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days... |
108 | West Indies v England | Sabina Park Sabina Park Sabina Park is the home of the Kingston Cricket Club, and is the only Test cricket ground in Kingston, Jamaica and is often referred to as "The Holiday Home of Cricket".... |
2004 |
| One Day International | 107 | West Indies v Ireland | PCA Stadium Punjab Cricket Association Stadium The Punjab Cricket Association Stadium is located at Mohali, just outside the city of Chandigarh. It is popularly referred to as the Mohali Stadium. The stadium is home to the Punjab team. Punjab's second international cricket stadium has been approved by BCCI in Bathinda, Punjab. The... |
2011 |
| Twenty20 International Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International is a form of cricket which is played over 20 overs per side between two national cricket teams. The game is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket... |
61 | West Indies v England | The Oval The Oval The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval... |
2007 |
| First-class First-class cricket First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams... |
212 | Windward Islands Windward Islands cricket team The Windward Islands cricket team is a cricket team representing the member countries of the Windward Islands Cricket Board of Control. The team plays in the West Indies regional tournament.... v Guyana Guyana national cricket team The Guyana cricket team is the representative first class cricket team of Guyana.It does not take part in any international competitions, but rather in inter-regional competitions in the Caribbean, such as the Carib Beer Cup and the KFC Cup, and the best players may be selected for the West Indies... |
Queen's Park | 2009 |
| List A | 135 | West Indies A v Glamorgan Glamorgan County Cricket Club Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County... |
Eugene Cross Park Eugene Cross Park Eugene Cross Park is a rugby and cricket ground in Ebbw Vale, Wales. In November 1919 the Ebbw Vale Welfare Association was formed and bought the "Bridgend Field". The of land became known as the Welfare Ground, and in 1973 its name was changed to its present title in honour of Sir Eugene Cross,... |
2006 |
| Twenty20 | 61 | West Indies v England | The Oval The Oval The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval... |
2007 |